SPCA gets grant to buy pet mobile
Christa Skinner spent her Tuesday afternoon looking for a new vehicle — not for herself, but for the many animals in need at the St. John’s SPCA.
The shelter’s manager of fund development said a $20,000 grant from Petsmart Charities of Canada will help the SPCA purchase a new vehicle.
Having the use of a vehicle is essential to the shelter’s daily operations — it’s used to transport animals between the shelter, satellite adoption sites and veterinary clinics, and to help rescue pets from hoarding situations.
“The vehicle is crucial to what we do, and we wouldn’t be able to do a lot of what we do without it,” said Skinner.
While the St. John’s SPCA currently has a van, it’s not in the best shape, so the Pet Transport grant from Petsmart Charities is “huge” for the shelter, she said.
Skinner said the grant will allow the SPCA to purchase the much-needed vehicle sooner than if they had to fundraise the entire cost themselves, which she estimated would probably take a year or more.
Running the shelter requires significant funding, the vast majority of which comes from corporate and personal supporters — less than one per cent of their budget comes from government funding.
Skinner said the SPCA applied for the Petsmart Charities grant in April and was delighted to find out it was chosen as one of the recipients.
Across Canada, $150,000 worth of Pet Transport grants were awarded to seven different animal welfare agencies.
Every year, Petsmart Charities of Canada grants about $3 million in its mission to reduce pet homelessness by supporting groups like the SPCA, said Carrie Trembinski of Petsmart Charities of Canada.
Trembinski said those grants are largely funded by donations Petsmart shoppers make at the checkout.
“We’re just really thankful to local pet lovers who choose to give to us through those donations and enable us to make grants like this one.”
Skinner said they’re shopping around right now for the best deal on a new vehicle and will purchase one within a couple of months.
She said the vehicle will ultimately help more animals find their forever homes, “which is really what we’re all about.”